Sophia's POVHe completely got out of bed and took the glass of water from my hand."What's your question?"."Ugh", I had to find the perfect way to relate it. Making him upset would only make matters worse for me."Do you keep secrets?".He finished sipping his water and dropped the glass back on the tray. I kept it on the bedside stool beside me and fully turned to face him."What do you mean by secrets?"."Well, it's clear enough. I want to know if you keep secrets?".I folded my arms and waited for the answer."Miss Sophia, get to your point".I could not tell him that I had heard his maids talking about a basement and I also could not say I was asking to confirm so I opted for a lie."What I want to know is if you owned this place. It looks gigantic for only you to manage.""I built this place from scratch. So it's safe to say that I am the rightful owner of the place".His eyes looked like they had been deprived of sleep and I saw them, nevertheless, I needed my questions to be
Derrick's POV.I was almost there when I heard someone crying in the back. I stopped and retraced my steps to where I felt it was coming from."What's wrong?".It was a little girl, she was seated on the floor, her eyes were swollen and red and her cheeks were puffy. She looked tattered and hungry.She raised her head to my view and then continued crying."Are you hungry?". She stopped and nodded her head. Just as I had expected."Where is your mother or father?", She shook her head. I assumed she had not yet formed the ability to speak. I dipped my hand into my pocket, brought some changes out, and asked her to follow me. There was a shop down the road.I bought her a snack and then a drink to follow it. She stopped crying and was smiling already."You like?", She nodded. I didn't need to ask, I could see the way her eyes were shining so brightly."Alright, here. Take it", as I handed over the snacks to her, my hands felt her skin and immediately, her memories flooded mine.That was
Sophia's POVThe Chattering and gossip from these maids were maddening to listen to. Never had I been raised around women and for some reason, I was grateful.They talked about the boy they had a crush on, their fellow maid and her business, how they had a crush on Derrick, and even how they had walked in on him one time when he had his shirt off.They were just about as crazy as I was when he was half-naked and dripping with water down his chest. I could understand their excitement, however, that was not what I was there for. I needed them to talk about the basement.I sat there for long, a cupboard I had crawled into, to listen to them. I waited patiently, hoping to hear them talk when finally, they contributed their voices to tell one of the maids."What's wrong?", I watched through the crack in the cupboard door as the maid who had been yelled at, stopped with a pot in her hand. She looked at each of their faces as though she was demanding an answer, "What did I do wrong?"."I se
Sophia's POV "Miss Sophia, what are you doing there?", I heard a voice from behind me. I froze. What was I going to tell her?"Can you hear me?", I heard her footsteps come closer to me. Her fingers went to my shoulder and she grabbed me lightly, "Is there something you need?".With a smile, I made a sharp turn her way and faked a cough, "I felt something sharp poke me in my side, I thought I could get medicine from here, can't I?".The maid shook her head. She was the youngest they had been talking to when I was hiding in the cupboard. She must have known it was dangerous to be anywhere near the basement. She pulled me away gently. "Come, we have some medicine in the kitchen. I can get them for you. Here, it's forbidden to go in there".I hissed but not to her hearing, it was my one chance to see what was behind that door and yet, she had caught me. I was disappointed. Better luck next time.As we walked down the pathway, I saw Derrick walking towards me. He looked upset.He stopped
Sophia's POV.My question must have ruined the mood. He stopped at once and stared blankly at me."Is this necessary?"."What do you mean?". "I'm asking if you need to ask these questions when it's unnecessary ". I watched him back away and then, he left me standing. He walked to his side of the bed and slid in. "I didn't mean to annoy you, I was just saying. I don't like—-"Goodnight, Miss Sophia". He dragged down the lantern's rope and the whole room went off.I was left standing in the dark, thinking about what I had just said. Maybe I was being too persuasive about this. He was being so nice to me. The least I could do was to respect his privacy.But he was not private, it seemed more like he was hiding a dead body in there.Everything felt odd.I crawled into the bed and covered myself up. My eyes weren't sleepy."Try not to think much about it". I whispered to myself as I patted myself on the back. It didn't take much from me as I was still on the bed. "One. Two. Three" and
Sophia’s POV.My soul left my body for a second. It took an extra minute to recover from the shock and remind my brain to breathe. I staggered back and dropped what was in immediately.“I…i…I can explain.”, I lied. What could I possibly tell him to make up for being in his basement, the one I had specifically said I would not talk about? He pulled closer, enough for me to see the look on his face. He looked very upset. My heart froze again.Was he going to kill me? Was it going to be here? In this dark basement where no one would even dare to find me?I imagined his rude maids would be the first to forget me. They wouldn’t even care to find me and if they asked, their boss would ignore them and that would settle it?“Sophia. Why are you—I fell to my knees and clapped my hands together as more tears fell on my cheeks. “Please punish me whichever way you deem fit but I beg of you, don’t kill me.”I could feel his gaze on me even when my eyes were closed. My heart raced against my chest
Sophia's POVWhat did he mean by that?I widened my eyes in surprise. Did he mean a ritual or was I to be used for a sacrifice?He laughed again and closed the gap between us when he kissed me more aggressively than before. He tasted every bit of my mouth as though his life depended on it.I liked it.I indulged too. I caressed the back of his neck and even went as far as reaching for the center of the back of his head.All the while we made 'hmm" and 'ahh' sounds.His groans were more seductive than mine. I felt my center tickle. How had I never seen this part of him? Why did I only see his bland side?He peeled off me and for a brief second, I thought I saw a golden ring form in his eyes.His iris turned gold and his pupil dilated. I gasped and pointed to them but when he blinked, I saw them disappear. His eyes returned to their normal color. His fangs disappeared. He became the Derrick I knew."What?". He was breathing heavily. I shook my head. How was I supposed to explain what I
Sophia's POV.He stared at me with no expression on his face, "What do you mean?"."You see… " I slurred my words as they rolled down my tongue. "I was so disturbed about you. I was worried about what would happen, who you are, and the rest of that".He leaned into his chair, "Seeing as you aren't as bad as I imagined you to be. I have decided that I will let go of my worries and be nice to you".He tightened his lips into a smile, "Be nice to me. Is this you trying to bribe me because I haven't reacted about seeing you in my basement?".I pouted. "You already reacted. You kissed me and carried me here so we could talk. I liked that and that's why I said what I said. I will be nice to you".It felt like ice rolling off my mouth and I hoped it felt like music to my ears. I stared deep into those beautiful eyes, almost forgetting myself.For the first time in my life, I was looking at someone who I found handsome and I was not going to be curious about him. "I will be kind to you if yo